Fun and Easy Fall Foliage Painting for Kids

Looking for fall-themed art inspiration to share with your kiddos? Here’s a lovely fall foliage painting to add to your plans!

My youngest kiddo and I recently came across the Charles Dickens poem “Merry Autumn Days” while we were reading aloud. The imagery in the poem instantly brought to mind all the beautiful colors of fall and inspired this fun and easy fall foliage painting project.

Merry Autumn Days
By Charles Dickens

‘Tis pleasant on a fine spring morn
To see the buds expand.
‘Tis pleasant in the summertime
To see the fruitful land;
‘Tis pleasant on a winter’s night
To sit around the blaze,
But what are joys like these, my boys,
To merry autumn days!

We hail the merry Autumn days,
When leaves are turning red;
Because they’re far more beautiful
Than anyone has said,
We hail the merry harvest time,
The gayest of the year;
The time of rich and bounteous crops,
Rejoicing and good cheer.

The best part about this fall-themed project is that there’s plenty of room for your artists to make it their own. From the poem to the leaves and even the tree itself, the premise here is to capture the beauty of fall foliage and have fun in the process.

Make a Fall Foliage Painting with Us!

Ready to get started on your fall foliage painting? You’ll only need a few supplies on hand.

Fall Foliage Painting Supply List

Watercolor paper or mixed media paper
Watercolors
Paintbrush
Water
Pencil
Tree Template (optional)
Sharpie pen

Step 1 – Sketch it out.

Start by sketching the outline of a tree and its branches onto the paper.

You can also trace the tree onto a sheet of watercolor paper if you want some help capturing the ideal shape and structure. To do this, shade the back of the template page with your pencil. Then, turn it over, place it on top of the watercolor paper, and use your pencil to draw on top of the sketch lines. This will transfer the tree onto your watercolor paper.

Step 2 – Paint the tree.

Next, carefully paint the tree trunk and branches using the watercolors. Keep in mind that layering oranges or reds onto the brown will add richness and variation to the tree. Better yet, a few strokes here and there are all you’ll need to achieve this effect.

Step 3 – Add the leaves.

Next, begin adding the leaves to your tree one color at a time. Don’t stress over size or shape, though. Simple oval and rounded leaves work best for this fall foliage painting.

Also worth noting, you don’t have to fill in all of your empty branches with leaves. Feel free to leave some empty space to imply that some have fallen to the ground.

Step 4 – Add the accents.

As the paint dries, take a moment to consider what poem or verse you’d like to add to your painting. (We’re obviously partial to “Merry Autumn Days,” but there are tons of options out there. (See Poetry Foundation for other suggestions.)

Also consider where you would like to write it. For example, you can write it in a traditional block in a corner or use the verse to frame your tree. This is a cool, but easy way to outline the shape of your tree.
Once you’ve settled on a poem or line, write it in with a Sharpie pen. Then, use the Sharpie pen to outline and accent the tree trunk, branches, and leaves however you wish. When you finish, your work will be ready to display and enjoy!

As always, we would LOVE to see your finished fall foliage painting. Use #masterpiecesociety in your caption or tag us on Instagram so we can celebrate your work. We would also love to see it in the Masterpiece Society Facebook Group.
By the way, we’ve got lots more fall-themed art inspiration for you to enjoy! Our woven pumpkin paintings and friendly monster art are great places to start if you’re looking for more seasonal art fun.